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Kota Kinabalu: A 54-year-old trader was acquitted of two counts of sexual physical harassment against a teenage boy without his defence being called.

Sessions Court Judge Amir Shah Amir Hassan discharged and acquitted Tay Chee Leong after ruling that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case.

Tay was accused of sodomising the 13-year-old victim at a hotel in Papar on Nov 11, 2023, and allegedly forcing the boy to perform oral sex at a grocery shop in 2021.

The charges were framed under Section 14(d) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, which provides for up to 20 years’ imprisonment and whipping upon conviction.

The prosecution, led by Deputy Public Prosecutor Bryan Francis, called seven witnesses during the hearing, while Tay was represented by counsels Mohamad Syazwan Shah Mohamad Ali, Nigel Neong Kaning, and Sarah Chin.